African Promise
Registered charity number 1122285
Trustees’ Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2025
African Promise Index to the Annual Accounts 2024-25
| Legal, Reference and Administrative Information | 1 |
|---|---|
| Trustees’ Report | |
| Structure, governance and management | 2 |
| Objectives & activities | 2-3 |
| Achievements & performance | 3-4 |
| Plans for the future | 4-5 |
| Financial review | 5-6 |
| Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities | 6 |
| Risks & safeguarding | 6 |
| Trustees’ declaration | 7 |
| Statement of Financial Activities | 8 |
| Balance Sheet | 9 |
| Notes to the Accounts | 10-13 |
| Independent Examiner’s Report | 14 |
African Promise Legal and Administrative Information
Registered Address
97a Stormont Road Battersea London SW11 5EJ
Charity number
1122285
Trustees
Christopher Ott (Chairman) Gary Shiels (Treasurer) Nicola Coldman
Founding Director/Settlor
Charles Coldman
Principal bankers (in the UK)
CAF Bank Ltd Kings Hill West Malling Kent ME19 4JQ
Principal bankers (in Kenya)
Absa Group Ltd (formerly Barclays Bank Kenya) Voi Branch PO Box 720 Voi 80300 Kenya
Principal currency brokers
Alpha FX Limited Brunel Building 2 Canalside Walk London W2 1DG
Equals Money Vintners Place 68 Upper Thames Street London EC4V 3BJ
Independent Examiner
Ryan Evans FCA Cadence Accounting Suite 3, 157 Station Road East Oxted Surrey RH8 0QE
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African Promise Trustees’ Report for the Annual Accounts 2024-25
The Trustees present their Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2025.
Structure, Governance & Management
African Promise is a Charity under the terms of Section 3 of the Charities Act 1993 and 2006. The charity was registered with the Charity Commission on 13[th] January 2008 under the registration number 1122285. The charity is governed by the Charitable Trust Deed of 10[th] December 2007.
Under the Trust Deed the power of appointing new Trustees of the Charity is vested in the Settlor, the charity’s founding director. The Trustees shall at no time exceed four in number. There are currently no official policies and procedures for the induction and training of new trustees. There were no appointments or resignations during the year meaning the Trustees currently number three.
The Board of Trustees, in conjunction with the founding director, is responsible for the governance and strategic direction of the charity. The founding director is responsible for ensuring the charity delivers its objectives.
Objectives and Activities
Charitable purposes and public benefit
The principal objective of the charity is to promote and provide for the advancement of education in primary schools in Kenya, in particular by supporting the development of schools in the Kasigau region by improving learning environments, enhancing pupil welfare and well-being, and removing barriers to accessing education.
The trustees have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit when reviewing the aims and objectives of the charity and when planning the future activities. The trustees assess how new activities planned will contribute to the overall aims and objectives they have set and periodically review existing activities to ensure ongoing public benefit.
Activities
The charity focuses on the following activities across its partner schools, which currently number eight serving approximately 3,000 children:
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Improvements and upgrades to infrastructure including through the construction and renovation of classrooms, WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene) facilities, kitchen/dining halls, offices/staffrooms, staff housing, and more.
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Provision of basic foodstuffs such as maize, rice and beans to ensure all pupils receive a daily lunchtime meal during term-time.
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Provision of funding towards the salaries of much-needed extra teachers and support staff including cooks and watchmen employed directly by schools (rather than by the government).
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The ad-hoc supply of furniture and equipment, learning resources and materials, and funding for educational programmes and activities.
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African Promise Trustees’ Report for the Annual Accounts 2024-25
The charity operates a model of directly managing projects, paying for and donating materials and resources (such as food), and donating funds directly to schools for specific purposes.
To support these activities the charity engages in raising funds from the general public and from private organisations in the UK and elsewhere including by: applying for funds from registered charitable trusts and foundations; hosting public fundraising events; purchasing places in challenge/endurance events; appealing for donations from members of the public; and partnering with fundraising charities, schools, companies, businesses and other groups and organisations.
To facilitate this and to help raise the profile of the charity and to maximise income the charity:
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maintains a website at www.africanpromise.org.uk and social media accounts on Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.
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actively uses the following third-party platforms as a means for collecting donations and raising funds online: CAF Donate, JustGiving, GlobalGiving, Facebook Fundraising, Benevity, GoFundMe, TheBigGive, Charities Trust, PayPal Giving Fund, Givergy & others.
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has a Google Ad grant worth up to $10,000pcm.
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uses Mailchimp to create and send email communications to individuals who have opted-in to hear from us.
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is registered with HMRC to claim Gift Aid on eligible donations.
The charity is registered with the Fundraising Regulator and is committed to upholding their Fundraising Promise in all our fundraising activities.
The charity’s day-to-day fundraising and marketing activities are overseen and implemented by the founding director, complemented by paid and pro-bono consultants providing ad-hoc and on-going support in areas such as PR, graphic design, and digital marketing.
Achievements and performance in the year
The charity continued to use its resources primarily to support improvements to school infrastructure, to provide food for a daily lunchtime meal, and to support other on-going school running costs including funding for the salaries of additional teachers and support staff as well as repair and maintenance activities.
Infrastructure projects supported in the year included: the construction of a dining hall at Jora Primary School, renovation of the ECD building at Mkamenyi Primary School, the addition of 225,000 litres of (rain)water storage capacity, and a number of other water, sanitation and hygiene related projects including toilets for staff and pupils, piping for the distribution of water within schools, and hand-washing facilities.
Despite increases to pupil enrolment in 2025 as a result of the addition of an extra year group as part of a restructure of the education system the cost of donated food for the lunch programme at £36,691 was around half that in the previous year (2023/24: £71,522). This was mostly due to lower food prices however around £3,600 worth of food for some schools for the second half of term three 2024 was not delivered by the supplier and not paid for.
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African Promise Trustees’ Report for the Annual Accounts 2024-25
Funds and materials were given to five further schools for the establishment of kitchen gardens and to two schools for improvements and additions to existing kitchen gardens. All the charity’s partner schools have now received support from the charity for these spaces. These funds are used to pay for perimeter fencing, beds and planters, water storage, shade structures, and tools, seeds and chemicals.
The charity donated a total of £20,395 (2023/24: £24,124) to schools to partially fund – together with contributions from parents and other partners - the salaries of around 75 extra teachers and support staff.
An additional £3,800 was donated to pay for vital maintenance and upkeep activities such as replacing broken/missing window glazing, repair of furniture, and servicing of office equipment.
Fund generation
The charity’s overall strategy for raising funds remained largely as in previous years which resulted in voluntary income of £130,046, a marginal increase from 2023/24 (£115,890), and fundraising costs of £13,263 (2023/24: £17,924).
However a much greater proportion of voluntary income was from individual giving (55%) than in 2023/24 (38%) as the charity received the balance from a legacy gift of £43,318 (from which a downpayment of £10,000 had been received in 2023/24), the charity participated again in the BigGive Christmas Challenge campaign (which raised £7,675 in public donations), whilst a different profile of fundraising events in the year meant that event income was down by around 75%.
In addition to donations from a number of first-time and long-term charitable foundation and corporate partners including Aspect Capital, Hazel’s Footprints Trust, Ratanben Zaverchand Kara Foundation, Hugh Symons Charitable Trust and Mageni Trust, the charity also received a transfer of the net assets of £2,050 from Akiki Development (charity number 1104579).
The Trustees would like to place on record their sincere thanks to all those who have supported the charity and its partner schools, their staff, and pupils in some capacity during the year.
Plans for the future
The Trustees have taken the difficult decision to significantly scale back the extent of the charity’s support for its partner schools and to make significant changes to the way the charity operates and delivers this support.
Over the course of 2025 the charity will shut-down the Kenyan end of its activities and operations and shift to a model of providing support for its partner schools purely through donations sent directly to schools from the UK.
Simultaneously the charity’s founding director will also be stepping back into a purely voluntary role as a Trustee and dedicating significantly less time to the day-to-day running of the charity, which is expected will have a dramatic impact on the charity’s fundraising activities and income and therefore its ability to maintain the current level of support for its partner schools.
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African Promise Trustees’ Report for the Annual Accounts 2024-25
As a result, it is expected that the charity’s universal support towards providing food for lunchtime meals and funding towards the salaries of extra school staff – two on-going costs that have been a heavy burden and strain on the charity and its resources – will cease by the end of 2025.
In 2026 and beyond, the charity will support its partner schools mainly by using whatever funds it has at its disposal to make ad-hoc donations to be used for small-scale development projects and for purchasing items schools may be in need of (such as books, furniture and equipment) as agreed with headteachers and school management boards.
The Trustees recognise that the decision to reduce the scope of the charity’s support for its partner schools will have a profound impact on them and their pupils. But these schools are in a significantly better place than when the charity’s relationship with them started (in some cases more than 15 years ago) and our work over that time has left behind a legacy which we and others partners in the region can continue to build on.
Financial Review
Summary of financial position
The Statement of Financial Activities to follow (page 8) shows the combined income and expenditure of the charity in the UK and Kenya for the year to 31[st] March 2025. The accounts show total income for the year of £133,781 (2023/24: £121,200) against expenditure of £174,430 (2023/24: £183,523), resulting in a deficit of £43,011 after accounting for exchange rate gains. The year closed with total funds of £46,749 of which £8,711 was held in restricted funds, down from £35,901 at the start of the year.
The Trustees had anticipated a deficit for the financial year given that income had been received in years prior for projects that were undertaken in the reported financial year.
Reserves policy
The charity held ‘free’ unrestricted funds of £38,038 at the year-end which will be used, together with forecast revenue, to meet the expenditure of the charity up to the end of 2025.
The Trustees anticipate that the charity will have only nominal on-going and recurring costs beyond the end of 2025 and therefore will not need to maintain any significant level of reserves, although the Trustees will aim to hold funds in the charity’s bank account sufficient for all known expenses for any forthcoming six-month period.
Currency exchange
The Trustees had set the budgeted exchange rate for translating expenditure in local currency in Kenya into pounds sterling at 175 Kenyan shillings (KES) to £1 and used forward contract mechanisms for purchasing Kenyan shillings to try to achieve this rate and mitigate against the risks of exchange rate volatility.
Drawing down from forward contracts booked in the previous and current year, the charity sent a total of 18,387,010 KES to its accounts in Kenya during the year at an actual average exchange rate for the year of 171.79.
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African Promise Trustees’ Report for the Annual Accounts 2024-25
Additionally, the charity also sent Kenyan shillings directly from an account held with Equals Money in the UK to its partner schools and other beneficiaries in Kenya. These donations totalled KES 3,738,530 at a cost of £23,933.
At the year end, the charity had in place open forward contracts with commitments to purchase KES 12,068,000 before the end of 2025. However these had been booked prior to the decision about the future of the charity and most of these funds will not be needed and, indeed, cannot be used. At the time of preparing the accounts these forward contracts had been cancelled at no cost to the charity.
Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities
Company law requires the trustees to prepare financial statements that give a true and fair view of the state of the affairs of the charity at the end of the financial year and of its incoming resources and application of resources. In preparing these financial statements, the Trustees are required to:
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select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently.
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make judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent.
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state whether applicable accounting standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements, and
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prepare the financial statements on a going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation.
The trustees are responsible for maintaining proper accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity and which enables them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Charities Act 2011 and the Statement of Recommended Practice 2005. The trustees are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
Risks & safeguarding
The trustees have identified and assessed the major risks to which the charity is exposed, including internal fraud, currency market volatility, loss of key individuals, and reliance on few funders. Systems, processes and measures have been established to mitigate those risks including robust financial record-keeping, the use of currency forwards, building the Trustees’ working knowledge of the charity and a focus on diversifying income and increasing the level of unrestricted income.
African Promise ensures statutory requirements concerning disclosure checks are met, maintains an up-todate safeguarding policy and procedures, and provides safeguarding training to all staff and volunteers. There were no reported safeguarding incidents in the year.
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African Promise Trustees’ Report for the Annual Accounts 2024-25
Declaration
The Trustees’ Report was approved by the Trustees and signed on their behalf by:
Trustee
Date
Christopher Ott
Chairman
Gary Shiels
Treasurer
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African Promise
Statement of Financial Activities for the Annual Accounts 2024/25
Notes Incoming resources 2 Incoming resources from generated funds Voluntary income Gift Aid & investment income 2 Total incoming resources Resources expended 3 Charitable activities Costs of generating voluntary income Governance & administration Total resources expended Net income resources before transfers Transfers Gains and (losses) on currency exchange 6 Net movement in funds Total funds brought forward Total funds carried forward |
Unrestricted Funds 2025 £ 86,716 3,735 90,451 39,460 13,263 6,007 58,730 31,721 (46,690) (852) (15,821) 53,859 38,038 |
Restricted Funds 2025 £ 43,330 - 43,330 115,700 - - 115,700 (72,370) 46,690 (1,510) (27,190) 35,901 8,711 |
Total Funds 2025 £ 130,046 3,735 133,781 155,160 13,263 6,007 174,430 (40,649) - (2,362) (43,011) 89,760 46,749 |
Total Funds 2024 £ 115,890 5,310 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 121,200 | ||||
| 159,380 17,924 6,219 |
||||
| 183,523 | ||||
| (62,323) - 6,376 |
||||
| (55,947) 145,707 |
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| 89,760 |
8
African Promise Balance Sheet for the Annual Accounts 2024/25
Notes Fixed assets Current assets Debtors Cash at bank and in hand CAF Bank CAFCash account #00016284 Pounds sterling cash Absa Bank account #0541079831 Absa Bank account #0541082433 Kenyan shilling in cash Alpha FX account Total current assets Liabilities 7 Net assets Funds of the charity 8 General ‘free’ funds Restricted funds Total funds The Accounts were approved by the trustees on_____ and signed on their behalf by: |
Total Funds 2025 £ 46,352 250 39 16 3,692 - 50,349 (3,600) 46,749 38,038 8,711 46,749 ____ |
Total Funds 2024 £ 83,933 245 1,270 1,278 1,035 3,799 |
|---|---|---|
| 91,560 (1,800) |
||
| 89,760 | ||
| 53,859 35,901 |
||
| 89,760 | ||
Gary Shiels Treasurer
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African Promise Notes to the Annual Accounts 2024/25
1. Accounting Policies
The principal accounting policies are summarised below. They have been applied consistently throughout the period.
a) Basis of accounting
The Accounts have been prepared under the historical cost convention, in accordance with applicable accounting standard and comply with the Statement of Recommended Practice 'Accounting and Reporting by Charities' issued in March 2005 (SORP 2005).
b) Fund accounting
Unrestricted funds are available for use at the discretion of the Trustees in furtherance of the general objectives of the charity. Restricted funds are subjected to restrictions on their expenditure imposed by the donor.
c) Incoming resources
Income is recognised in the period in which the charity is entitled to receive it and when the income can be quantified with reasonable accuracy.
Grants are recognised when the charity becomes beneficially entitled to them. Investment income is included when receivable. Incoming resources from tax reclaims are included at the same time as the gift to which they relate.
d) Outgoing resources
The cost of charitable activities includes costs incurred by the charity in carrying out its activities and services. It includes costs directly attributed to those activities and a share of indirect costs necessary to support them.
Governance costs comprise the costs associated with meeting the constitutional and statutory requirements of the charity and include any costs associated with the preparation and examination of statutory accounts.
All costs are allocated between the expenditure categories of the Statement of Financial Activities on a basis designed to reflect the use of the resource. Costs which relate specifically to a particular activity are allocated wholly and directly, others are apportioned between different activities on an appropriate basis.
e) Foreign exchange
This includes any gain or loss arising on translating transactions carried out in Kenyan Shillings to GB Pounds and vice-versa. Transactions during the year are translated at an average exchange rate for the year and closing cash balances are translated at the year-end exchange rate.
f) Assets
Kenyan cash and bank balances are converted to GB Pounds using the exchange rate operative at the year-end date.
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African Promise
Notes to the Annual Accounts 2024/25
2. Analysis of incoming resources
| 2. Analysis of incoming resources |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Voluntary income Individual giving Trusts & foundations Corporate Supporter/community fundraising Events Charities & partners (inc. Kids4Kenya) Investment & Gift Aid income Interest Gift Aid |
Unrestricted Funds 2025 £ 58,775 8,500 10,028 1,737 5,470 2,206 86,716 223 3,512 3,735 |
Restricted Funds 2025 £ 12,802 21,000 5,000 4,516 - 12 43,330 - - - |
Total Funds 2025 £ 71,577 29,500 15,028 6,253 5,470 2,218 130,046 223 3,512 3,735 |
Total Funds 2024 £ 43,693 26,500 7,657 16,460 21,508 72 |
| 115,890 | ||||
| 224 5,086 |
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| 5,310 |
- Analysis of resources expended
| 3. Analysis of resources expended |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Projects & programmes Infrastructure & buildings Resources & equipment Learning programmes Teacher & support staff salaries Feeding programme Water supply Kitchen gardens Support costs Staff costs Travel, transport & accommodation Office costs Fundraising materials & services Advertising, PR & website Events Bank charges Regulatory & membership Other |
Charitable Activities 2025 £ 70,613 3,299 - 20,395 36,691 2,743 1,308 12,287 5,994 1,819 - - - - - 11 155,160 |
Fundraising & marketing 2025 £ - - - - - - - 5,760 - - 1,892 1,770 3,511 - - 330 13,263 |
Gov. & admin 2025 £ - - - - - - - 2,880 - 969 - - - 264 94 1,800 6,007 |
Total Funds 2025 £ 70,613 3,299 - 20,395 36,691 2,743 1,308 20,927 5,994 2,788 1,892 1,770 3,511 264 94 2,141 174,430 |
Total Funds 2024 £ 39,181 2,820 138 24,124 71,522 1,552 - 24,989 4,134 2,147 2,273 1,736 7,003 286 63 1,555 |
| 183,523 |
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African Promise Notes to the Annual Accounts 2024/25
4. Support costs
Staff costs
Staff salaries are allocated 100% towards charitable activity for Kenya staff and 40% charitable activity, 40% fundraising and 20% administration for our Director's consultancy fees. All office and staff costs incurred in Kenya are allocated 100% towards charitable activities.
Fees for examination of the accounts
The independent examiner is charging a fee of £1,500 +VAT for their services.
5. Taxation
The charity is exempt from corporation tax on its charitable activities.
6. Gains and losses on currency exchange
| 6. Gains and losses on currency exchange |
||
|---|---|---|
Opening cash and bank balances translated at closing rate for the previous year KES 545,429.75 @ 152.13 Income less expenditure for the year translated at average rate for the year KES 98,286.70 @ 171.79 Kenya expenditure at budgeted average rate less Kenya expenditure at actual average rate KES 18,298,489.80 @ 175.00 less KES 18,298,489.80 @ 171.79 Closing cash and bank balances translated at closing rate for the year KES 643,716.45 @ 171.79 7. Liabilities Independent examiner fee (2023/24) Independent examiner fee (2024/25) |
2025 £ 3,583 572 1,954 (3,747) 2,362 2025 £ 1,800 1,800 3,600 |
2024 £ 3,216 506 (6,515) (3,583) |
| (6,376) | ||
| 2024 £ 1,800 - |
||
| 1,800 |
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African Promise
Notes to the Annual Accounts 2024/25
8. Movement in funds
| 8. Movement in funds |
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Restricted funds Projects & programme management Feeding Minds Teacher salaries Toilets4All Water4Schools Ngambenyi Primary School Mkamenyi Mkamenyi (furniture) Mkamenyi (rainwater) WASH Textbooks4All Right2Play Farm2Fork Unrestricted funds General funds |
Balance at 01.04.24 £ - 28,773 29 72 116 3,995 2,670 98 (43) 47 (4) 90 58 35,901 53,859 53,859 89,760 |
Incoming Resources £ - 2,895 274 29 4,588 6,000 10,000 - - 15,026 - - 4,518 43,330 90,451 90,451 133,781 |
Transfers £ 20,379 5,632 20,468 - 13,436 (4,412) - - - (11,553) - - 2,740 46,690 (46,690) (46,690) - |
Outgoing resources £ 20,111 36,691 20,395 - 17,955 1,229 9,396 - - 2,740 - - 7,183 115,700 58,730 58,730 174,430 |
Losses on Currency £ 268 86 376 - 185 28 212 - - 222 - - 133 1,510 852 852 2,362 |
Balance at 31.03.25 £ - 523 - 101 - 4,326 3,062 98 (43) 558 (4) 90 - |
8,711 |
||||||
38,038 |
||||||
38,038 |
||||||
46,749 |
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African Promise
Independent Examiner’s Report for the Annual Accounts 2024-25
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of African Promise (the Trust) for the year ended 31 March 2025.
Responsibilities and basis of report
As the charity trustees of the Trust you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’).
I report in respect of my examination of the Trust’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.
Independent examiner’s statement
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:
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(1) accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by section 130 of the Act; or
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(2) the accounts do not accord with those records; or
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(3) the accounts do not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair’ view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Name: Ryan Evans
Relevant professional qualification or body: FCA qualified - Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW)
Address: Cadence Accounting, Suite 3, 157 Station Road East, Oxted, Surrey, RH8 0QE
Date:
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